Sci-Fi Romance....kinda? I think I might make this into a book...like REALLY contemplating it.

Saben (Sah-bean)-

Kelnus/Captain Kelly

Saben wiped the blood from her cheek and picked up the sword. Kelnus eyes followed her blade as she pressed it against his neck.

"Don't move," her voice growled from the back of her throat.

"Please you have to listen to me," he whispered back, wincing from the cold, sharp metal pressed against his skin.

Saben narrowed her eyes as she pressed the blade closer to his throat, pushing Kelnus against the wall of the humming generator that created the only light for them to see by, save for the soft red glow that emitted from her sword. Their eyes locked as she held him still. Their chests moved up and down quickly as they tried to regain their breath from their little skirmish.

"What are you doing here?" Saben hissed, reaching over and with her free hand and lifting the sleeve of his black uniform revealing a number 16 branded on his arm, the skin puckering where it didn't heal properly. "You know the Lower 16 have no right to be here let alone on this planet."

Kelnus was unaffected by her observation, his eyes never leaving hers as he replied.

"You are in danger. We need to get out of here before they come."

"They? What are you talking about? You are the one who broke in. You are the one who tripped the alarm. The only person in danger is you. You could get your rations revoked because of this stunt of yours."

Gently, Kelnus lifted his hands, placing one on Saben's arm while the other reached for something in his pocket. Sabe's eyes widened as she pressed her blade closer to his throat, daring him to move again. But he just raised his brows, not minding the sliver of blood that was dripping into his shirt as he reached for his ICC from his pocket. Nodding, Kelnus offered it to her, his gaze insistent.

"See for yourself. The RIOI is rising and they plan to attack. From what we could gather, they were supposed to attack yesterday but since they haven't the last of us who were meant to hold down the fort were ordered to come back to base, on our way picking up whatever supplies we could."

Saben shook her head, ignoring his outstretched hand and the ICC that looked ten years old, too old for any sort of display to work properly. None of this made sense and she didn't feel like listening to a lunatic.

She shook her head again for good measure as she spoke. "Impossible. We monitor the Lower 16 like a hawk since the 88-33 incidents and we have seen no activity. Besides, our military bases on Dia, Metis, and Sinope have no reason to suspect the RIOI is up on anything. They have been quiet."

Kelnus nodded. "Exactly. You Higher 53 sure know how to ignore the painfully obvious."

Saben opened her mouth, her eyes angry but the sound of the generator behind Kelnus powered down, the glow of her red sword lighting up the confusion on her face. She looked around, trying to find what caused the room to shut down. Slowly the rest of the hundreds of generators were turned off, throwing them into a deafeningly silent darkness. Saben eyes landed on Kelnus, her glowing sword reflecting perfectly the anger in her eyes.

"Did you do this?"

"No, how can I? I have a blade against my neck."

"Turn them back on." Saben pressed him.

Behind her, the room echoed with a soft clank. Kelnus looked over her shoulder though it wasn't hard her being nearly a head shorter than him. In the darkness, he thought he saw something.

Saben reached up and shoved his arm, her blade dropping slightly. "Did you hear me? Turn them back-"

"Shhh!" He placed a hand over her mouth.

She grunted, disgusted as she shoved him off, her red blade creating a path of red light as she pointed it at his chest.

"Don't touch me."

"Then don't yell, I think I saw something."

There it was again, the clanking but this time it was followed by the sound of something scraping against the floor. Saben looked at Kelnus, her brow raised. He nodded, placing a finger to his lips as he inched toward the sound. Saben, her eyes flickering to the man she didn't trust, lifted her blade as she walked up quietly behind him, her eyes darting from dark corner to dark corner.

Kelnus stopped, raising his hand for her blade. She gave it to him, her curiosity getting the better of her as her suspicions about his intentions were pushed away at the idea of something lurking in the shadows. Kelus took the sword, impressed with how well balanced it was. Holding it out, like a torch, he looked to see where the sound was coming from and what caused it. But all he was met with was a wall and a few piles of scraps and spare parts.

Turning to Saben, Kelnus shrugged slightly, shaking his head.

Saben took back her sword, holding it up between them to see his face as she spoke to him.

"Looks like your stalling is up. Now turn everything back on or I'm calling my superiors. The Curators aren't known for their hospitality." She snorted as she looked down at her wrist communicator, flicking it on. "But I'm sure you know that already."

Kelnus ignored her as another sound echoed from the other side of the room, his head snapping in that direction. But he couldn't see anything, not with all the power down and the light from Saben's sword not strong enough to illuminate even the place around them. He turned back to her, watching her with amusement as she tried to contact the Curators.

"Admiral Takkins, come in, this is General Saben. I have apprehended a Lower 16 personnel. They need to be transported to confinement."

The room echoed with static, giving Saben goosebumps, her stomach dropping with dread. She glanced at the Lower 16 scum and narrowed her eyes. The likelihood of him knocking out the generators was one thing but communications as well, well, that would take a lot more than a standard signal jammer she saw clipped to his collar. She tried again.

"Anyone? Please, I am in the generator room seven. A Lower 16 has made it into the facility. I request back up."

Another scrape of metal echoed throughout the room sending Kelnus on high alert. They couldn't get out due to the doors being electronically sealed shut. Quickly, he started looking for other ways to get out as the Higher 53 'General' was busy working on a dead end.

"Hello? Please, someone, come in! I need energy restored to generator room seven."

Kelnus inched back toward the spot where the first sound came from, where the wall with the scraps stood, his eyes straining to see anything off the faint cast off of the sword. Saben watched him as she kept trying, not yet ready to accept the fact they were trapped, let alone that she was left by her fellow Century Officers.

Another clank and scrape sounded but this time it was a lot closer and there was a flash of blue light against the wall. Kelnus was about to take a step closer when he let out an alarmed shout, cutting Saben off mid-sentence making her look up and just in time too.

It happened so fast.

A dog like robot jumped out of the darkness and leapt right for Kelnus. In an effort to save himself, Kelnus moved to the side, pushing the large metal dog away from him straight to the woman next to him. But she was as quick as him, lifting her sword in defence, letting the dog's sheer force fall onto her blade, it's two halves crashing to the ground in sparks.

"What the actual He-"

Kelnus reached over taking her shoulders and turning her around before she could finish yelling at him.

"Yell at me later. There are more."

Sure enough, blue dots littered the darkness, their pinpoints of hunting stares making the room look like an eerie replication of the stars outside. But these stars blinked as they moved closer. The scraping sounds of their metal dog paws on the ground made for a most song to their impending fate.

Saben's shoulders sagged as she lifted her sword up weakly in hopes to see how many there were. "We are so screwed," she whispered.

Kelnus nearly agreed with her as he looked around the room one more time, using the glowing of the Meta-Dogs' eyes to shed more light on the area around them. His eyes stopped on an energy dampener bypass, it's large encasing bubbled with cool water special oils that helped keep the machine from overheating. If he remembered correctly, that stuff was flammable, almost as potent as ancient Greek Fire.

Kelnus squeezed the woman's shoulders and pointed to the machines just a few meters away and on the second level.

"There. I can get us out of here if you can help me clear the path to those bypass systems."

Saben looked around, the dogs nearly upon them, just a leap away from death. "We have one weapon between us."

Kelnus smiled in the darkness, glad the challenge didn't deter her from at least trying. "Then be ready to take turns."

Saben looked at the Lower 16, her eyes narrowing as she brought her blade up, ready to fight. "Never thought I'd die next to a Lower 16."

Kelnus assessed his odds as he chuckled once. "I do have a name, Higher 53."

"Yeah well, you can tell me once we get out of here alive."

"Deal."

Then they attacked.

Saben downed three dogs before she heard her temporary partner yell for her sword.

"SWORD!"

As soon as she was able to find him, she tossed it to him, her mind immediately going into survival mode. She picked up a fallen dog leg and started beating them off, all while following him to the upper level.

Kelnus grabbed the sword just in time to ward off two dogs, their heads falling to the ground. The floor easily became covered in robotic carnage as the two of them made their way to the second floor, the meta-Dogs growing easier and easier to kill with each pass of the sword. Kelnus was slightly worried about that but didn't let his mind linger on it as the woman called for her sword back. Kicking a dog to the ground, Kelnus slid over to her, placing the sword in her hand as he took a severed head and bashed it against the head of a dog about to bite her leg.

They went on like this for what felt like hours but it only lasted a matter of minutes. They fell into a comfortable pattern, keeping an eye on one another and knowing when the other needed the sword. Save for a few cuts and bruises, they had little to show for the exercise. Of course, that wasn't long enough to get them all, but it got them to the Energy dampener bypass unit. Saben breathed hard as she stood guard, fighting off any and all dogs that tried to get to them on the small second-floor platform.

"Do you know what you are doing?" Saben called back to him, her arms starting to ache from all the fighting.

"Yes. Do you know if these coolant tanks are fireproof?"

Saben couldn't see as to what he was referring to but she had an idea. "Yes, to an extent. Why? Planning to set up camp for the night."

Kelnus came up behind her, taking the blade from her hands as he flipped it over and stabbed down at a dog that had nearly made it through the gap in the floors. Saben tried not to think about how strong he felt pressed up against her back, his arms encasing her as he held the sword in front, it's warm glow showing that more meta-dogs were on their way.

"No, but I was thinking more like fireworks."

Saben turned to him, knocking his arm and making him drop the sword to the lower floor. Saben reached for it, her eyes growing wide as it clanked to the ground. The meta-dogs crowded around it, guarding it against any attempts to retrieve it.

"My sword!"

Kelnus shook his head. "Leave it, I'll get you a new one."

"But I don't want a new one, I want that one!"

"Woman," he grumbled as he turned her away from the railing.

Quickly, Kelnus took her hand and pulled her against him as he pressed himself into the corner of three coolant tanks where he hoped the dogs couldn't reach as well as the flames from his explosion.

Kelnus pressed her head to his chest as he pressed her against the wall, his arm propping him up as he buried his face in her hair.

"Do you trust me?" He whispered

Saben swallowed, his breath hot against her neck. But she nodded. "Yes." She whispered back.

Kelnus grinned. But before he could reply he heard her mumble something else into his chest. He leaned down more for her to repeat herself.

"Saben. My name is Saben."

Saben looked up at him, her eyes searching his face. He just smiled before holding her to him again.

"Hold on Saben, it's going to get hot," he whispered before all Hell broke loose.

The floor shook and their ears popped. The heat hit them first then a breathtaking wave shock of air making them gasp in an ashy breath. Blinding light filled their once dark prison. They could hear the dogs scattering but they were no match for the large, hot explosion that took out a whole section of the second floor as it's flames easily filled the whole generator room.

Saben pressed her face into the Lower 16's chest, her arms folded in but her hands clutching his shirt. She could feel him shield her as best he could, a groan sounding next to her ear letting her know that he was at least slightly injured. Several more explosions sounded from various parts of the large room, the head no doubt making the generators pop.

But just as soon as it happened, it had died down. Kelnus pulled away from the wall, his arm still around Saben's small body as he checked her over, his face pinched in pain.

"Are you alright?"

She nodded, looking up at him. But instead of anger, frustration or confusion as he assumed she would be, she looked worried. She reached up, snuffing out a burning hair from his head before placing her hand on his shoulder. He winced again.

"But you aren't," she replied, her fine blonde brows furrowed, but only for a moment.

Kelnus shook his head slightly, leading her out of their coolant hiding spot. "Come on, I know a quick way to get to my ship. Don't ask questions, just keep up."

The place was on fire but there was a way out by means of a sizable hole in the wall to the outer halls. The explosions still shook the ground though they were farther down the room where not a single dog was to be found other than their smouldering remains. But before they got far, something gave Kelnus pause. A few charred dogs piled on top of each other off to the side drew his attention, the red glow of Saben's sword peeked out from underneath them still clutched in the mouth of the bottom dog.

Saben called out to him as he picked his way over to it. Grunting, he retrieved it, swinging it around with his good arm as he walked up to her. He presented it to her with a smirk.

"Told you I'd get it back for you."

Saben couldn't help but smile softly as she took it back, sliding it in her holster on her hip. "Thank you.

Kelnus nodded before turning around and leading the way again, picking up the pace. But paused when she called out for him to stop.

"Wait, I didn't get your name. We survived and I already told you mine...."She let her sentence die off.

"Kelnus. Come on. We can't wait any longer. If they could get the generators powered down then I'm sure they could do a lot more."

Saben blinked as her body shivered with a wave of panic at the sudden shift of urgency in his voice. Kelnus, she liked his name, was limping now as he lead her through various halls and back passages. Saben would look through windows or glance down hallways only to find the main Jupiter station was all but deserted, not a soul in sight as the lights of the red alert flashed as the alarms screamed.

Kelnus leaned against a wall, closing his eyes as he tried to catch his breath. Saben came up beside him, placing a hand on his arm.

"Will you be-"

Kelnus nodded, patting her hand and not letting her finish as he started forward again. "Ignore me. We are almost there."

Saben shook her head slightly as she kept up with him at a slight jog. "You sure do like cutting me off."

"You talk too much."

Saben let out a breath through her nose. "Hardly."

Kelnus glanced down at her, his dark eyes glinting with a bit of humor. "You are also really bad at listening."

Saben shook her head, her blond ponytail swooshing against her neck. "I just found it hard to believe that a Lower 16 scavenger had more intel on the RIOI than me, a Century General. It's my job to know about the threats made to Jupiter's Moons."

It was Kelnus' turn to let out a huff of air through his nose. "Hardly."

Just before she was about to ask what that was supposed to mean there was a large explosion, the whole base shaking as heat billowed out from behind them. So perhaps the means of their escape was a bit over the top. Kelnus took Saben's hand and nearly dragged her with him through a few more halls before they came to the south Docking Port.

Saben's jaw dropped when she saw the size of the frigate he was in charge of. She was utterly surprised he wasn't found out. But there was no time to gawk. Quickly, the two of them made their way down to the docking port, the explosions growing closer together and larger as they took time to set up the departure procedures.

Kelnus opened the bay doors and practically pushed Saben inside, ignoring her shouts of protest. He pointed to the upper decks his face sweating with pent-up pain. "Go to the captain's bridge. It's not hard to miss. Press the orange release button after the count of ten. I'll be on board well before you push it. Just promise me you will."

Saben's eyes narrowed but she nodded, biting her lip. "Yeah. I'll do it. Just don't hurt yourself anymore."

Kelnus raised a brow. "Why are you so concerned about me all of a sudden?"

"I can't fly this thing myself. Shut up and go do your thing."

The bay doors closed and Kelnus took off to finish the prep.

Sure enough, Kelnus was on board before Saben pressed the button, his pained body sagging against the doorway to the captain's bridge. Saben turned around and the pleased smile on her lips died at seeing his state. She rushed over, gathering him into her arms as he leaned heavily on her.

He pointed to the front controls. "We need to get to your Moon. Which one is it?"

Saben did as he asked and watched as he took the frigate out of the docking bay and out into space. Jupiter churched under them as they came about face to the base. Kelnus blanched as Saben's eyes widened. The whole Jupiter Station was in flames, bits and pieces of it floating about, broken ships and frozen corpses too.

Kelnus took a deep breath his eyes focusing on the moons that dotted the sky. "Which one, Saben. We need connections. People. As many things as we can gather. I have a rendezvous party and they won't leave without me unless they are in danger. I say we have a few more hours before the RIOI's second wave hits."

Still, Saben said nothing. Her eyes were glued to the closest moons that had come around. Isonone, Himilia, Io, Mneme, Thebe, and Elara were all shattered, the image of something powerful having ripped through them as parts of the moons' surfaces were frozen in place by space.

Kelnus reached up and placed a hand on hers that laid on his chair. "Saben, please. Your moon. They may still be alive." His voice was quiet but she jumped all the same.

"Europa," it came out like a whoosh of pain.

Kelnus didn't even want to think about what she was experiencing, sure that the Lower 16 didn't look any better.

Tears clouded Saben's vision as she felt herself clutch onto Kelnus' hand that comfortingly laid on hers. But she couldn't ignore the pain he was in, sure that the movement didn't make it feel any better. So she moved away, not wanting to look, not wanting to see how bad the damage to Jupiter's Moons was.

But it was only going to get worse.

Kelnus had just plotted the course to Europa when the sensors of his frigate started going haywire. Though there was nothing on the display screen Kelnus' ship kept reading a rather large and very powerful ship drawing near. Suddenly the place darkened, everything casted in shadow by a very very large ship.

It looked like a RIOI transport ship but at least a hundred or two hundred times bigger. Blue lights littered his hull as guns turned and pointed to Kelnus' ship. But it didn't fire. Instead, it's other guns shifted and took aim at the other moons that were close enough to see; Aitne, Callisto, Kore, Leda, and Euanthe. Without warning the RIOI ship fired, the five moons and their unsuspecting inhabitants obliterated in seconds. There was nothing left behind like the others save for a hand full of small moon rocks and frozen dust in the air. Kelnus turned to tell Saben to not look but he saw that she had already turned around, her face full of utter and complete shock.

The RIOI ship took aim again, firing at three more moons. Saben's heart shattering with each one of them. She stepped forward, her eyes never leaving the screen. Kelnus looked up at her, not sure what to say or do.

Saben fell into the chair next to him her body going numb. "Loska," she whispered, tears now falling freely as she stared unblinking as more moons were destroyed. She turned to Kelnus, his own face full of sorrow but looking at her.

"Get us out of here."

Kelnus didn't have to be told twice. He rerouted his navigation coordinates and the ship took off, the RIOI mothership none the wiser as it didn't bother itself with a supply ship. In a blink of an eye, they had made it to a group of other ships. Several were as big as the Daunting as Kelnus called his frigate. Some were half its size or twice as big. There were roughly forty ships, meaning some escaped convoys from some of the moons. That gave him hope but he kept it to himself, not wanting to hurt Saben even more with any sense of false hope. He patched his communications to the lead ship where he knew his crew was aboard.

"Captain Kelly here. Ready for Earth Jump boys."

"Aye! Cap'n! Aren't we glad to hear your angelic voice!" An Irish voice came over the speakers but Saben didn't bat an eye as she sat unmoving.

"Thanks, Ossy. Tell Brigger to take it away. I saw the Mothership. We have nothing for us here."

There was a pregnant pause before the happy Irishman returned, his voice slightly shaken but it put a smile on Kelnus' face.

"You got it Cap'n. Hold on to your butts lads, we're in for the longest jump of your life! Earth bound!"

Slowly the space around them stretched and then one by one each ship was sucked into some unseen whole. A green shield like bubble encased each ship allowing them safe passage through the small wormhole. Being the last one, the Daunting saw the tip of the Mothership appear right before Kelnus and Saben were sucked into the wormhole, saving them from an early reunion with those they lost.

Saben wordlessly got up, ignoring Kelnus' gentle voice calling her back. She needed to not think, not exist for the next million years. The images of her home burned in her mind as she closed her eyes and pressed the heel of her hands to her eyes, willing them to blot out forever. But it was no use. So instead she busied herself.

Food sounded good, or at least she knew Kelnus would need some so she found her way to the kitchens where she made something easy and light on the stomach. Tears still threatened to fall but it felt nice to have something other than exploding moons at the forefront of her mind.

Kelnus was beside himself with worry over Saben and her state of mind. Before meeting her, he wouldn't have felt a twinge of pain for any of the lost Higher 53 but now...now he couldn't help but feel responsible for her devastation, that he could have tried harder to warn them. He ached to hold her and take away her pain. She was just doing her job and now she had nothing.

She had no one.

But what was done, was done. There was nothing he could do except make sure she made it to Earth safely.

The sound of clinking dishes drew his attention behind him. He sagged with a small smile as he watched Saben walk in with a tray of food, his stomach growling in anticipation. It smelled wonderful.

He tried to call out to her, praising her on her perfect timing but all that came out was a grunt as his body hit the floor, darkness taking over his senses. The last thing he saw was Saben's worried blue eyes looking him over as her hand touched his cheek.

Placing the food aside, Saben rushed to Kelnus' collapsed body and tried to wake him up, but it was no use. Holding back another sob, she did her best to get his arm around her shoulders enough to drag him to a room. She saw some when she was making her way up to the bridge, taking note of what she passed so she wouldn't get lost.

After getting him in a room and his charred shirt off, Saben used what little medical knowledge she learned from Sentry duty to patch him up as best she could. Then she made him comfortable, tucking him into bed before leaving him to rest. She squared her shoulders and stood at the helm, watching the stars zoom by in a rainbow of colors taking her to her new home.

She had to be brave and not lose her head. For her sister who was gone. And for Kelnus who now needed her as much as she needed him.

~~~~~~

Kelnus checked the ships controls and automatic diagnostics. His right arm was in a sling and his burns didn't feel as bad as they did before. From what he could tell by the time indicator that he had been asleep for at least three days. Not for the first time was he extremely happy that the Daunting was outfitted and revamped to be nearly self-automated needing five crewmen max or only one if need be. So it was not unusual for the Daunting to go about without someone at the helm for a stretch of time.

When he first woke up, Kelnus' mind went immediately to Saben. He went to go find her only to stumble upon her in a small lounge room a throw blanket tossed over her with a book laying on her chest opened to only the third page. He was all but convinced she had tried to keep herself away and therefore away from the memories of what she had just seen but sleep finally won out. As best he could with one hand, Kelnus draped the blanket more fully over her and took the book away.

He stilled as she moved, her face tucked into the couch cushion as she got comfortable. But Kelnus didn't miss the pinch of pain manifesting itself on her forehead. Gently, he reached over and smoothed it away, moving down to stroke her cheek as he pulled away from her. His heart felt lighter as he watched her expression changed to calm and her body relaxed.

Kelnus got to work catching up with his crew, telling them repeatedly that he was fine and that the Higher 53 General wasn't going to kill him in his sleep. Ossy was about ready to jump ship and risk getting killed just to be with him for protection. Kelnus missed his men. But that wasn't the only reason he was talking to them. He needed to know what Higher 53 Moon residence had survived, his ears perked for Saben's home Moon.

For nearly two days, Kelnus was alone, letting Saben get the rest she most desperately needed. So he busied himself with things around the ship that he hadn't had time to do in months. He was able to discard the sling only using it when resting or sitting around doing nothing. He had no idea three weeks at Earth Jump was going to be so painfully long. Especially without the rise and set of any sort of sun be it real or synthetic as the Lower 16 had to create due to their less than ideal placement away from the sun or any sort of constant and reliable Moon pattern.

At the end of the second day, Kelnus was at the helm standing over some signal readers when he heard a soft shuffling behind him. Turning, Captain Kelly was greeted with a tired looking woman with sleep marks on her face, static hair, and tears rolling down her rosy cheeks. Her bare feet looked cold on the hard metal ground, the small throw around her shoulders doing nothing to hide her shivering shoulders.

Saben didn't say anything as she walked up to Kelnus, her eyes focusing on nothing in particular as she numbly moved forward. She didn't wait for an invitation or stop to ask before she walked right up to him and placed her forehead on his chest. Luckily, Kelnus was a smart man. He wrapped his arms around her, enveloping her in the warmth she never knew to exist.

Neither of them spoke as they just stood there, soaking in each other's warmth. Kelnus reached a hand up to stroke her hair that had come loose of her hair tie leaving a waterfall of soft spun gold down her back. He didn't mind as he felt tears wet his shirt, soaking through. Her shoulders shook but she didn't make a sound, making her sobs all the more heartbreaking.

Saben wasn't sure how long they stood there but she was thankful for his patience though she knew he owed her no such obligation. Gently, she pulled away from him, taking note his reluctance to drop his arms from around her body. He placed his hands on her shoulders as she finally looked up at him, her eyes all red and puffy. She was sure she looked a nightmare but Kelnus found it adorable.

Kelnus reached up and stroked her drying tears from her cheeks, his eyes never leaving hers. She was worried he wanted to talk about it or was going to ask if she was alright to which she assumed he'd know the answer. But when he spoke, she couldn't help but crack a small smile.

"Are you hungry? I know how to make a mean grilled cheese sandwich with some tomato soup."

Saben nodded, leaning into his hand that was still on her cheek. Kelnus smiled softly, stroking her cheek with his thumb before reaching down and taking her hand, leading her to the kitchen. He had moved a small couch into the side dining room so she would have somewhere to rest as he got to work. He made a lot of sandwiches and a vat of soup, not sure how hungry she was. Checking behind him a few times Kelnus made sure she was comfortable.

Saben leaned her head against the back of the couch, her heavy eyelids drooping into slits as she watched the Lower 16 captain cook. Even when she first apprehended him she found him to be attractive, cursing her luck that the good looking ones always had to be troublemakers. But slowly and after she had time to reflect on everything that had happened, Saben found herself being drawn to him. Just being in the same room as he made her feel safe and content.

Especially now that she had nothing. He was the only person that knew her. He was all she had left even if they didn't know each other well.

Kelnus set the table and Saben came over. He watched her carefully as they ate, his eyes picking up on her lethargic movements and her lack of eye contact. Her heavy heart weighed her down and he didn't like seeing her like this. He wanted the fiery Saben back. But he knew it would take a while before she resurfaced again. Thankfully, he was a patient man.

After her third sandwich, Saben surprised herself by asking Kelnus a question. "Can you tell me about yourself? Your home. Your friends. Your...family."

Kelnus looked up at her, his mouth dripping with soup as he processed what she said, her voice scratchy most likely from all her crying. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and nodded, leaning back in his chair.

"Sure. But it's not all flowers and pudding bowls."

Saben finally looked him in the eyes as she gave him a weak and trembling smile. "I don't care. I just need to hear your voice."

Kelnus could feel his cheeks going warm as he cleared his throat, not missing the near pleading look in her eyes. "Yeah yeah. Sure, sure. Uh...Well, we all know the last of the Earth Gen 4 oldies died five years ago so I think I'll start where I stole my first ship from my good old gramps."

~~~~~~~

Saben wiped happy tears from her eyes as she leaned her head against the couch, her knees pulled up against her chest, a thicker blanket around her shoulders with a pair of Kelnus' woollen socks warming her toes. Another giggle bubbled out of her chest as she made eye contact with the smiling man across from her, his own body pulled up on the couch leaning to the side, his hands holding a warm cup of cocoa. The couch was small so their feet couldn't help but touch, leaving Saben with a fluttering feeling in her stomach that would come and go as she would remember they were that close to each other.

Kelnus nodded, his laughter filling the hair. "It's true! The size of the hole that was left behind was so big I couldn't cover it with a tapestry so we moved my uncle's bookcase in front of it. Took him the longest time to notice, thinking he lost all his books." He shook his head then took a small sip of his drink, his eyes never leaving her evergreen ones, his heart warm at the laughter that was spilling out of them.

They just looked at each other, their laughter slowly dying down as space continued to fly past them. Saben tore her gaze away first, looking one of the many windows, her finger mindlessly tracing the edge of her own hot cocoa mug. She could feel Kelnus staring at her, but she tried to pretend she couldn't.

"My sister is...was the handmaiden of the Patriarch's wife. She was sick once and I dyed my hair brown so I could step in for her. She had already used up all her medical vouchers. She was terrified. So, when she got up, ill and dead on her feet, I had a note telling her to go back to bed and I took her place. She had told me a lot about her job for me to get an idea of what I had to do. Plus we looked nearly alike despite our age difference." Saben shrugged moving her gaze to her mug. "Everyone knew it wasn't her but they didn't say anything, they just let me stumble along. She laughed for hours after her first day back, hearing all the stories about her giving orders like a general and having posture a statue would be jealous of. She didn't drop it for weeks."

Kelnus leaned forward, placing his mug aside before resting his arms on his knees, his hands coming close to touching Saben's but not quite. "What was her name?"

"Loska, she was younger than me by five years but she was my best friend. It was only us since our parents died in service. I was all she had." Saben closed her eyes, letting out a shaky breath. "But now she's gone. And I have no one."

Kelnus brushed his knuckles against the back of her fingers gently. At first, Saben wasn't sure if she had imagined but her eyes opened to see her mug being removed from her hands, leaving them cold. But not for long. She blushed as Kelnus took her small hands in his. He scooted a little closer, their legs effectively intertwined, but neither acknowledged it as they focused on each other's gaze.

Kelnus shook his head slightly, a small smile pulling at his lips. "No, you're not alone."

"You barely know me."

Kelnus blinked. He was going to suggest himself to be there for her but he didn't want to freak her out. He was touched that she thought he meant himself when he, in fact, didn't, at least not originally.

"Time can change that. But even so, you are not alone, not really."

Saben wanted to believe him but she couldn't stop the tears of defeat fall down her cheeks. "No, Kelnus, I am. No one from the Higher 53 survived. Like you said, we didn't listen. We didn't pay attention to the signs."

Reaching up, Kelnus softly wiped her tears away, keeping his hand on her cheek to which Saben found herself leaning into.

"I wasn't sure if I should have told you until I found out for sure but some of those ships at the rendezvous were escape convoys from the Higher 53."

Saben sat up, bringing them closer, her eyes wide with surprise. But Kelnus knew what she was thinking and answered her before she asked.

"I'm not sure which Moons they are from but," he stroked her cheek with his thumb, his gaze soft, "you won't be the only Higher 53."

Saben nodded the smallest bit, not wanting to lose his touch, her eyes closing against the desperate hope that her sister was among the other Higher 53 survivors. Suddenly, the couch moved as well as Kelnus' hands. Saben opened her eyes just as she felt Kelnus pull her to him but instead of a hug like she thought, he leaned back until they were laying down on the couch, her head on his chest and his arms around her.

"Don't punch me but you looked like you needed a hug," he whispered as he pressed his cheek to the top of her head, closing his own eyes.

Saben snorted, nodding against his chest as she soaked up his warmth, taking in his scent that was easily becoming her favourite smell. After getting a blanket pulled other the both of them, Kelnus moved one of his hands up and down her arm, making nonsense shapes on her skin. Saben snuggled closer to him, her mind clearing of all the pain she had been feeling the past few days, her heart no longer too heavy to let her sleep. In fact, she felt her heart feel lighter despite the rapid beating. The last thing she remembered thinking was his implication that he would be there for her, that she wasn't really alone. Not with him here to be with her.

It didn't take long for the tried blonde to fall asleep in Kelnus' arms, making him smile, grateful she would be able to sleep again. Kelnus closed his own eyes, the hum of the ship at Earth Jump making it easy to fall asleep too. Not to mention having a warm body on top of him to hold, feeling her breath on his neck made it near impossible to want nothing more than this moment to last forever.

So much happened so fast that it came as no surprise the two of them were thrust together so suddenly. But Kelnus didn't mind, he liked the feeling of being needed, wanted. Saben has made him feel and do things he never thought he'd ever feel or do. Such as great stress over a batch of scrambled names and creating a program to track a specific name.

While Saben had been asleep, Kelnus created a software in the ship's computer to listen for any sort of names or titles that it will then compare those with the names and titles manifest of the Earth Jump convoy he had stored and gathered from Ossy and the others on the lead ship. A soft beep made Kelnus' eyes snap open and his arm reached up and shake so his baggy sleeve would fall past his elbows.

His inner arm glowed with a new Skin Reader Display he had snagged from a Higher 53 officer a few months back. Several names scrolled by until it came to a sudden stop on the name; Loska. And right above it scrawled where she was from; Europa. So at least he knows Saben wasn't lying, not that she would need to. A bar under her name quickly filled as the screen loaded. Then, in bright green flashing letters the word Matched blinked under Loska's name.

Kelnus let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, his head light and his heart pounding. Next, he closed his eyes and smiled, affording him a moment to collect himself from his news. Placing his arms back around her, Kelnus held Saben closer to him, smiling as she let out a content moan, pressing her head into the crook of his neck. Kelnus pressed lingering kisses on Saben's forehead, temple, the top of her head and anywhere else he could reach that wouldn't wake her. He had to let her sleep but he couldn't help himself.

Loska's name continued to blink on his arm, her name matching with the manifest list of survivors from the Higher 53.